The Aathal Dinosaur Museum (Swiss German native name: Sauriermuseum Aathal ) is a paleontological museum in the locality Aathal of the municipality of Seegräben in the canton of Zürich , Switzerland , and one of the few dinosaur museums in Europe .
82-542: Diplodocus hayi Holland, 1924 (type) Galeamopus is a genus of herbivorous diplodocid sauropod dinosaurs . It contains two known species: Galeamopus hayi , known from the Late Jurassic lower Morrison Formation ( Kimmeridgian age, about 155 million years ago) of Wyoming , United States, and Galeamopus pabsti , known from the Late Jurassic fossils from Wyoming and Colorado . The type species
164-404: A coachwhip ) or, as more recently suggested, tactile function. The tail may have served as a counterbalance for the neck. The middle part of the tail had "double beams" (oddly shaped chevron bones on the underside, which gave Diplodocus its name). They may have provided support for the vertebrae, or perhaps prevented the blood vessels from being crushed if the animal's heavy tail pressed against
246-401: A 29 m (95 ft) long D. hallorum was estimated to weigh 23 metric tons (25 short tons) in body mass. A study in 2024 later found the mass of a 33 m (108 ft) D. hallorum to be only 21 metric tons (23 short tons), though the study suggested this only represents the average adult size and not the above average or maximum body size. The nearly complete D. carnegii skeleton at
328-483: A canyon west of San Ysidro , New Mexico . The find was reported to the New Mexican Museum of Natural History , who dispatched an expedition led by David D. Gillette in 1985, that collected the specimen after several visits from 1985 to 1990. The specimen was preserved in semi-articulation, including 230 gastroliths , with several vertebrae, partial pelvis, and right femur and was prepared and deposited at
410-563: A deterrent to the predators Allosaurus and Ceratosaurus : their remains have been found in the same strata , which suggests that they coexisted with Diplodocus . Diplodocus is among the most easily identifiable dinosaurs, with its typical sauropod shape, long neck and tail, and four sturdy legs. For many years, it was the longest dinosaur known. Among the best-known sauropods, Diplodocus were very large, long-necked, quadrupedal animals, with long, whip-like tails. Their forelimbs were slightly shorter than their hind limbs, resulting in
492-423: A funiculus cord that runs from the external occipital crest of the skull to elongate vertebral neural spines or “withers” in the shoulder region plus sheet-like extensions called laminae run from the cord to the neural spines on some or all of the cervical vertebrae. However, most sauropods do not have withers in the shoulders, so if they possessed a similar ligament, it would differ substantially, perhaps anchoring in
574-461: A horizontal posture, with forelimbs shorter than hind limbs. Diplodocids flourished in the Late Jurassic of North America and possibly Africa. A subfamily, the Diplodocinae , was erected to include Diplodocus and its closest relatives, including Barosaurus . More distantly related is the contemporaneous Apatosaurus , which is still considered a diplodocid, although not a diplodocine, as it
656-493: A largely horizontal posture. The skeletal structure of these long-necked, long-tailed animals supported by four sturdy legs have been compared with cantilever bridges . In fact, D. carnegii is currently one of the longest dinosaurs known from a complete skeleton, with a total length of 24–26 meters (79–85 ft). Modern mass estimates for D. carnegii have tended to be in the 12–14.8-metric-ton (13.2–16.3-short-ton) range. Diplodocus hallorum , known from partial remains,
738-526: A limb on the Diplodocus . The skin fossil itself is small in size, reaching less than 70 cm in length. Due to the vast amount of scale diversity seen within such a small area, as well as the scales being smaller in comparison to other diplodocid scale fossils, and the presence of small and potentially “juvenile” material at the Mother’s Day Quarry, it is hypothesized that the skin originated from
820-446: A nearly complete skull and the atlas-axis complex preserved in articulation, and it was also referred to Diplodocus until Tschopp’s reassessment, which placed it as a specimen of Galeamopus hayi . In 2015, it was renamed as the separate genus Galeamopus by Emanuel Tschopp , Octávio Mateus and Roger Benson . The generic name is derived from Latin galeam , the accusative of galea , "helmet", and opus , "need". The combination
902-535: A nearly complete skull of a juvenile Diplodocus , was found at the quarry and is one of few known and highlighted ontogenetic dietary changes in the genus. Diplodocus is both the type genus of, and gives its name to, the Diplodocidae, the family in which it belongs. Members of this family, while still massive, have a markedly more slender build than other sauropods, such as the titanosaurs and brachiosaurs . All are characterized by long necks and tails and
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#1732783396418984-479: A semi articulated skull of a diplodocine with mandibles (CM 11161) in the Monument. Another skull (CM 3452) was found by Carnegie crews in 1915, bearing 6 articulated cervical vertebrae and mandibles, and another skull with mandibles (CM 1155) was found in 1923. All of the skulls found at Dinosaur National Monument were shipped back to Pittsburgh and described by William Jacob Holland in detail in 1924, who referred
1066-402: A single action. Also, the palinal (backwards) motion of the lower jaws could have contributed two significant roles to feeding behavior: (1) an increased gape, and (2) allowed fine adjustments of the relative positions of the tooth rows, creating a smooth stripping action. Young et al. (2012) used biomechanical modeling to examine the performance of the diplodocine skull. It was concluded that
1148-462: A skull molded based on USNM 2673, a skull assigned to Galeamopus pabsti . The Carnegie Museum mount became very popular, being nicknamed " Dippy " by the populace, eventually being cast and sent to museums in London , Berlin , Paris , Vienna , Bologna , St. Petersburg , Buenos Aires , Madrid , and Mexico City from 1905 to 1928. The London cast specifically became very popular; its casting
1230-486: A small or even “juvenile” Diplodocus . The first record of Diplodocus comes from Marshall P. Felch’s quarry at Garden Park near Cañon City , Colorado , when several fossils were collected by Benjamin Mudge and Samuel Wendell Williston in 1877. The first specimen (YPM VP 1920) was very incomplete, consisting only of two complete caudal vertebrae, a chevron, and several other fragmentary caudal vertebrae. The specimen
1312-522: A very stable tripodal posture. In a tripodal posture Diplodocus could potentially increase its feeding height up to about 11 m (36 ft). Sauriermuseum Aathal Hans-Jakob Siber, a mineral and fossil dealer, started in 1977 to exhibit temporarily a fossilized giant turtle from four and a half meters in length at his annual special show in Aathal , and was featuring the eight-meter-long skeleton of an Edmontosaurus four years later. In 1992
1394-419: A wealth of skeletal remains, Diplodocus is one of the best-studied dinosaurs. Many aspects of its lifestyle have been subjects of various theories over the years. Comparisons between the scleral rings of diplodocines and modern birds and reptiles suggest that they may have been cathemeral , active throughout the day at short intervals. Marsh and then Hatcher assumed that the animal was aquatic, because of
1476-470: Is a member of the sister subfamily Apatosaurinae . The Portuguese Dinheirosaurus and the African Tornieria have also been identified as close relatives of Diplodocus by some authors. Diplodocoidea comprises the diplodocids, as well as the dicraeosaurids , rebbachisaurids , Suuwassea , Amphicoelias possibly Haplocanthosaurus , and/or the nemegtosaurids . The clade
1558-530: Is actually dubious, which is not an ideal situation for the type species of a well-known genus like Diplodocus . A petition to the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature was being considered which proposed making D. carnegii the new type species. This proposal was rejected by the ICZN and D. longus has been maintained as the type species, because Hatcher did not demonstrate why
1640-662: Is also the holotype of Galeamopus hayi , the combinatio nova of the type species D. hayi . Several other specimens were referred to the genus Galeamopus but not to Galeamopus hayi . All of the specimens referred to Galeamopus are from the Morrison Formation , with 3 of the 4 specimens collected in Wyoming. SMA 0011, a skeleton nicknamed "Max" and found in June 1995 at the Howe-Stephens Quarry,
1722-413: Is an extinct genus of diplodocid sauropod dinosaurs known from the Late Jurassic of North America. The first fossils of Diplodocus were discovered in 1877 by S. W. Williston . The generic name, coined by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1878, is a Neo-Latin term derived from Greek διπλός ( diplos ) "double" and δοκός ( dokos ) "beam", in reference to the double-beamed chevron bones located in
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#17327833964181804-406: Is debated but it should have been able to browse from low levels to about 4 m (13 ft) when on all fours. However, studies have shown that the center of mass of Diplodocus was very close to the hip socket ; this means that Diplodocus could rear up into a bipedal posture with relatively little effort. It also had the advantage of using its large tail as a 'prop' which would allow for
1886-492: Is intended as a translation of Wil-helm, literally "want helmet", in reference to the first name of both Utterback and Holland. The name is at the same time an allusion to the fact that the brittle braincase of the type specimen is in need of a helmet. The genoholotype is HMNS 175 (previously CM 662), the original skeleton. It was found in layer of the lower Morrison Formation dating from the Kimmeridgian . This specimen
1968-593: Is known from one of the most well preserved diplodocid fossils, a nearly complete skeleton with associated skull. The first specimen referred to Galeamopus was collected by Marshall P. Felch in September, 1884 at his quarry in Garden Park , Colorado . The specimen consisted of a partial skull and mandibles, which Felch sent to his employer at the Yale Peabody Museum , Othniel Charles Marsh , but
2050-487: Is now Dinosaur National Monument on the border region between Colorado and Utah, with the sandstone dating to the Kimmeridgian of the Morrison Formation . From 1909 to 1922, with the Carnegie Museum excavating the quarry, eventually unearthing over 120 dinosaur individuals and 1,600+ bones, many of the associated skeletons being very complete and are on display in several American museums. In 1912, Douglass found
2132-608: Is the first known from a Diplodocus . Another Diplodocus skeleton was collected at the Carnegie Quarry in Dinosaur National Monument, Utah, by the National Museum of Natural History in 1923. The skeleton (USNM V 10865) is one of the most complete known from Diplodocus , consisting of a semi-articulated partial postcranial skeleton, including a well preserved dorsal column. The skeleton
2214-415: Is the most likely feeding behavior of Diplodocus , as it explains the unusual wear patterns of the teeth (coming from tooth–food contact). In unilateral branch stripping, one tooth row would have been used to strip foliage from the stem, while the other would act as a guide and stabilizer. With the elongated preorbital (in front of the eyes) region of the skull, longer portions of stems could be stripped in
2296-668: Is the sister group to Macronaria ( camarasaurids , brachiosaurids and titanosaurians). A cladogram of the Diplodocidae after Tschopp, Mateus, and Benson (2015) below: Amphicoelias altus Unnamed species Apatosaurus ajax Apatosaurus louisae Brontosaurus excelsus Brontosaurus yahnahpin Brontosaurus parvus Unnamed species Tornieria africana Supersaurus lourinhanensis Supersaurus vivianae Leinkupal laticauda Galeamopus hayi Diplodocus carnegii Diplodocus hallorum Kaatedocus siberi Barosaurus lentus Due to
2378-424: Is to study the ligaments and their attachments to bones in extant animals to see if they resemble any bony structures in sauropods or other dinosaur species like Parasaurolophus . If diplodocus relied on a mammal-like nuchal ligament, it would have been for passively sustaining the weight of its head and neck. This ligament is found in many hoofed mammals, such as bison and horses. In mammals, it typically consists of
2460-513: The Bighorn Basin Paleontological Institute in 2017. The quarry was very productive, having mostly isolated Diplodocus bones from juveniles to adults in pristine preservation. The quarry notably had a great disparity between the amount of juveniles and adults in the quarry, as well as the frequent preservation of skin impressions, pathologies , and some articulated specimens from Diplodocus. One specimen,
2542-543: The Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania , on which size estimates of D. hallorum are mainly based, also was found to have had its 13th tail vertebra come from another dinosaur, throwing off size estimates for D. hallorum even further. While dinosaurs such as Supersaurus were probably longer, fossil remains of these animals are only fragmentary and D. hallorum still remains among
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2624-411: The Morrison Formation of Sheep Creek , Wyoming , with funding from Scottish-American steel tycoon Andrew Carnegie , they discovered a massive and well preserved skeleton of Diplodocus. The skeleton was collected that year by Jacob L. Wortman and several other crewmen under his direction along with several specimens of Stegosaurus , Brontosaurus parvus , and Camarasaurus preserved alongside
2706-454: The Mother's Day Quarry , exhibits several different types of scale shapes including rectangular, polygonal, pebble, ovoid, dome, and globular. These scales range in size and shape depending upon their location on the integument, the smallest of which reach about 1mm while the largest 10 mm. Some of these scales show orientations that may indicate where they belonged on the body. For instance,
2788-459: The size of these animals. Diplodocus had small, 'peg'-like teeth that pointed forward and were only present in the anterior sections of the jaws. Its braincase was small, and the neck was composed of at least 15 vertebrae . The discovery of partial diplodocid skin impressions in 1990 showed that some species had narrow, pointed, keratinous spines, much like those on an iguana . The spines could be up to 18 centimeters (7.1 in) long, on
2870-695: The "whiplash" portion of their tails, and possibly along the back and neck as well, similarly to hadrosaurids . The spines have been incorporated into many recent reconstructions of Diplodocus , notably Walking with Dinosaurs . The original description of the spines noted that the specimens in the Howe Quarry near Shell, Wyoming were associated with skeletal remains of an undescribed diplodocid "resembling Diplodocus and Barosaurus ." Specimens from this quarry have since been referred to Kaatedocus siberi and Barosaurus sp., rather than Diplodocus . Fossilized skin of Diplodocus sp., discovered at
2952-413: The 1970s, general consensus has the sauropods as firmly terrestrial animals, browsing on trees, ferns, and bushes. Scientists have debated as to how sauropods were able to breathe with their large body sizes and long necks, which would have increased the amount of dead space . They likely had an avian respiratory system , which is more efficient than a mammalian and reptilian system. Reconstructions of
3034-728: The Carnegie Museum that had been collected at Dinosaur National Monument. The specimen (DMNH 1494) was nearly as complete as the Smithsonian specimen. It consists of the vertebral column complete from cervical 8 to caudal 20, right scapula-coracoid, complete pelvis, and both hind limbs without feet. It was mounted in the museum during the late 1930s and remounted in the early 1990s. Although not described in detail, Tschopp and colleagues determined that this skeleton also belonged to D. hallorum . Few Diplodocus finds came for many years until 1979, when three hikers came across several vertebrae stuck in elevated stone next to several petroglyphs in
3116-545: The New Mexican Museum of Natural History under NMMNH P-3690. The specimen was not described until 1991 in the Journal of Paleontology , where Gillette named it Seismosaurus halli (Jim and Ruth Hall's seismic lizard) , though in 1994, Gillette published an amendment changing the name to S. hallorum. In 2004 and later 2006, Seismosaurus was synonymized with Diplodocus and even suggested to be synonymous with
3198-405: The apex forms a blunt, triangular point. The most prominent wear facet is on the apex, though unlike all other wear patterns observed within sauropods, diplodocine wear patterns are on the labial (cheek) side of both the upper and lower teeth. This implies that the feeding mechanism of Diplodocus and other diplodocids was radically different from that of other sauropods. Unilateral branch stripping
3280-431: The base of their necks at the maximum possible vertical extension when in a normal, alert posture, and argued that the same would hold true for sauropods barring any unknown, unique characteristics that set the soft tissue anatomy of their necks apart from other animals. The study found faults with Stevens' assumptions regarding the potential range of motion in sauropod necks, and based on comparing skeletons to living animals
3362-610: The collection was expanded and in 1993 the Sauriermuseum Aathal in the current building was opened. The family-owned company Siber + Siber supported the funding of the further activities. The former building of the Baumwollspinnerei Streiff & Cie weaving mill in Aathal was built in 1903 and houses the museum on about 4,500 square metres (48,000 sq ft), including the outside park on
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3444-467: The depictions and finds by Marsh and Cope to assemble their own dinosaur fossil collections. The competition to mount the first sauropod skeleton specifically was the most intense, with the American Museum of Natural History , Carnegie Museum of Natural History , and Field Museum of Natural History all sending expeditions to the west to find the most complete sauropod specimen, bring it back to
3526-769: The dubious D. longus and later Tschopp et al. 's phylogenetic analysis in 2015 supported the idea that many specimens referred to D. longus actually belonged to D. hallorum . In 1994, the Museum of the Rockies discovered a very productive fossil site at Mother's Day Quarry in Carbon County, Montana from the Salt Wash member of the Morrison Formation that was later excavated by the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History and Science in 1996, and after that
3608-606: The finger and hand bones arranged into a vertical column, horseshoe-shaped in cross section. Diplodocus lacked claws on all but one digit of the front limb, and this claw was unusually large relative to other sauropods, flattened from side to side, and detached from the bones of the hand. The function of this unusually specialized claw is unknown. No skull has ever been found that can be confidently said to belong to Diplodocus , though skulls of other diplodocids closely related to Diplodocus (such as Galeamopus ) are well known. The skulls of diplodocids were very small compared with
3690-409: The front and the inside, which are separate from the rear wing of the spine. This rear wing shows a continuous transverse width over most of its length. The neural arch of the atlas has on each side of its base a small triangular spur. The second neck vertebra, the axis , has a neural spine with a knob-shaped bump on the front end of the ridge on its front side. With the middle and rear neck vertebrae,
3772-407: The ground. These "double beams" are also seen in some related dinosaurs. Chevron bones of this particular form were initially believed to be unique to Diplodocus ; since then they have been discovered in other members of the diplodocid family as well as in non-diplodocid sauropods, such as Mamenchisaurus . Like other sauropods, the manus (front "feet") of Diplodocus were highly modified, with
3854-482: The hip region. Another hypothesized neck-supporting ligament is an avian-like elastic ligament, such as that seen in Struthio camelus . This ligament acts similarly to the mammal-like nuchal ligament but comprises short segments of ligament that connect the bases of the neural spines, and therefore does not need a robust attachment zone like those seen in mammals. A 2009 study found that all tetrapods appear to hold
3936-512: The home institution, and mount it in their fossil halls. The American Museum of Natural History was the first to launch an expedition, finding a semi-articulated partial postcranial skeleton containing many vertebrae of Diplodocus in at Como Bluff in 1897. The skeleton (AMNH FR 223) was collected by Barnum Brown and Henry Osborn , who shipped the specimen to the AMNH and it was briefly described in 1899 by Osborn, who referred it to D. longus . It
4018-520: The longest known dinosaur (excluding those known from exceedingly poor remains, such as Amphicoelias or Maraapunisaurus ). The estimated length was later revised downward to 30.5–35 m (100–115 ft) and later on to 29–33.5 m (95–110 ft) based on findings that show that Gillette had originally misplaced vertebrae 12–19 as vertebrae 20–27. Weight estimates based on the revised length are as high as 38 metric tons (42 short tons) although more recently, and according to Gregory S. Paul,
4100-427: The longest known dinosaurs. Diplodocus had an extremely long tail, composed of about 80 caudal vertebrae , which are almost double the number some of the earlier sauropods had in their tails (such as Shunosaurus with 43), and far more than contemporaneous macronarians had (such as Camarasaurus with 53). Some speculation exists as to whether it may have had a defensive or noisemaking (by cracking it like
4182-563: The longest necks would have required a 1.6-ton heart – a tenth of the animal's body weight. The study proposed that animals like these would have had rudimentary auxiliary "hearts" in their necks, whose only purpose was to pump blood up to the next "heart". Some argue that the near-horizontal posture of the head and neck would have eliminated the problem of supplying blood to the brain, as it would not be elevated. Diplodocines have highly unusual teeth compared to other sauropods. The crowns are long and slender, and elliptical in cross-section, while
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#17327833964184264-438: The morphology of sauropod necks have concluded that the neutral posture of Diplodocus neck was close to horizontal, rather than vertical, and scientists such as Kent Stevens have used this to argue that sauropods including Diplodocus did not raise their heads much above shoulder level. A nuchal ligament may have held the neck in this position. One approach to understanding the possible ligament structure in ancient sauropods
4346-442: The museum's team, 10 further original skeletons from Dino, air and marine saurians, 19 detached skeleton fossil dinosaur replicas as well as 31 life-size dinosaur models and 42 replicas of dinosaurs and dinosaur skulls. In 2012 there were 437 guided tours, of which about three hundred for school classes, and since 1992 about 1,571,012 visitors. The staff of the museum consists of approximately 33 employees, of which six are members of
4428-449: The neck and thorax of Diplodocus show great pneumaticity , which could have played a role in respiration as it does in birds. The depiction of Diplodocus posture has changed considerably over the years. For instance, a classic 1910 reconstruction by Oliver P. Hay depicts two Diplodocus with splayed lizard-like limbs on the banks of a river. Hay argued that Diplodocus had a sprawling, lizard-like gait with widely splayed legs, and
4510-422: The ovoid scales are closely clustered together and look similar to scales in modern reptiles that are located dorsally. Another orientation on the fossil consists of arching rows of square scales that interrupts nearby polygonal scale patterning. It is noted that the arching scale rows look similar to the scale orientations seen around crocodilian limbs, suggesting that this area may have also originated from around
4592-518: The paleontological-scientific team. Beginning in the early 1990s, Hans-Jakob Siber and his team perform excavations on the Howe Ranch in the upper Jurassic Morrison Formation , and since 2010 in the Dana-Quarry, Ten Sleep, Big Horn Basin, Wyoming, USA. Skeletons are recovered and subsequently dissected, mounted and exhibited in Aathal. The excavation technique is presented in the museum, and
4674-416: The paratype. There were political reasons rather than scientific for naming the first dinosaur collected by the Carnegie Museum for their patron, Andrew Carnegie. It was not until 1907, that the Carnegie Museum of Natural History created a composite mount of Diplodocus carnegii that incorporated CM 84 and CM 94 along with several other specimens and even other taxa were used to complete the mount, including
4756-405: The position of its nasal openings at the apex of the cranium. Similar aquatic behavior was commonly depicted for other large sauropods, such as Brachiosaurus and Apatosaurus . A 1951 study by Kenneth A. Kermack indicates that sauropods probably could not have breathed through their nostrils when the rest of the body was submerged, as the water pressure on the chest wall would be too great. Since
4838-414: The proposal that its dentition was used for bark-stripping was not supported by the data, which showed that under that scenario, the skull and teeth would undergo extreme stresses. The hypotheses of branch-stripping and/or precision biting were both shown to be biomechanically plausible feeding behaviors. Diplodocine teeth were also continually replaced throughout their lives, usually in less than 35 days, as
4920-412: The ridge between the rear joint processes, the postzygapophyses , does not extend beyond the rear edge of the neural arch. The study also determined six autapomorphies of the type species Galeamopus hayi alone. The part of the parietal bone forming the edge between the rear skull and the skull roof is low, with a height less than that of the foramen magnum . The appending basipterygoid processes at
5002-484: The skeleton. The skeleton (CM 84) was preserved in semi articulation and was very complete, including 41 well preserved vertebrae from the mid caudals to the anterior cervicals , 18 ribs, 2 sternal ribs, a partial pelvis, right scapulocoracoid , and right femur. In 1900, Carnegie crews returned to Sheep Creek, this expedition led by John Bell Hatcher , William Jacob Holland , and Charles Gilmore , and discovered another well preserved skeleton of Diplodocus adjacent to
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#17327833964185084-400: The specimen and helped mount the skeleton at Sauriermuseum Aathal . The 2015 study established seven distinguishing traits of the genus as such. These were autapomorphies , unique derived characters. On the back of the skull, the paroccipital process is curved in side view. The teeth have paired wear facets. The first neck vertebra, the atlas , has a neural spine with processes pointing to
5166-453: The specimen collected in 1899. The second skeleton (CM 94) was from a smaller individual and had preserved fewer vertebrae, but preserved more caudal vertebrae and appendicular remains than CM 84. Both of the skeletons were named and described in great detail by John Bell Hatcher in 1901, with Hatcher making CM 84 the type specimen of a new species of Diplodocus , Diplodocus carnegii (" Andrew Carnegie 's double beam"), with CM 94 becoming
5248-404: The specimen he called Diplodocus carnegii was not actually just a more complete specimen of Diplodocus longus . Although the type specimen was very fragmentary, several additional diplodocid fossils were collected at Felch’s quarry from 1877 to 1884 and sent to Marsh, who then referred them to D. longus . One specimen ( USNM V 2672), an articulated complete skull, mandibles, and partial atlas
5330-420: The specimens to D. longus . This assignment was also questioned by Tschopp, who stated that all of the aforementioned skulls could not be referred to any specific diplodocine. Hundreds of assorted postcranial elements were found in the Monument that have been referred to Diplodocus , but few have been properly described. A nearly complete skull of a juvenile Diplodocus was collected by Douglass in 1921, and it
5412-452: The study also argued that soft tissues could have increased flexibility more than the bones alone suggest. For these reasons they argued that Diplodocus would have held its neck at a more elevated angle than previous studies have concluded. As with the related genus Barosaurus , the very long neck of Diplodocus is the source of much controversy among scientists. A 1992 Columbia University study of diplodocid neck structure indicated that
5494-583: The surrounding property. The focus is on the museum's own excavations and original dinosaur bones, 19 special exhibitions and subsequently integrated new finds. A shop, a cafeteria and a park for children ( Dino-Gardino ) are sections of the museum. Among around 645 exhibits, there are skeletons, reproductions and originals finds of Stegosaurus , Ankylosaurs , Pterosaurs , 'featured' Dinosaurs, Archaeopteryx eggs and embryos and footprints, as well as meteorites and minerals of Siber + Siber . The collection includes 10 skeletons being finds from excavations by
5576-589: The taxidermists may be seen at work in the so-called Schaupräparatorium . Public transportation is provided by the S-Bahn Zürich line S14 (ZVV) to Aathal railway station. The museum is located about 600 metres (2,000 ft) from the station towards Uster . The museum is closed on Mondays. After hours visits are available by appointment, as well as guided tours for groups. In the Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance ,
5658-1191: The top surface of the shinbone forms a pinched process, behind the cnemial crest at the front. Combined, there are thirteen autapomorphies present in Galeamopus , exactly the minimum the study used as a criterion to distinguish separate genera. The cladogram below shows one hypothesis on the relationships of Galeamopus to other diplodocids, as found by the analysis of Tschopp & Mateus (2017). Apatosaurus ajax Apatosaurus louisae Brontosaurus excelsus Amphicoelias altus Brontosaurus yahnahpin Brontosaurus parvus Kaatedocus siberi Tornieria africana Dinheirosaurus lourinhanensis Supersaurus vivianae Leinkupal laticauda Galeamopus hayi Galeamopus pabsti Barosaurus lentus Diplodocus carnegii Diplodocus hallorum [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Diplodocus Diplodocus ( / d ɪ ˈ p l ɒ d ə k ə s / , / d aɪ ˈ p l ɒ d ə k ə s / , or / ˌ d ɪ p l oʊ ˈ d oʊ k ə s / )
5740-408: The underside of the braincase strongly diverge at an angle of more than 60°. The ulna of the lower arm is long, with a minimum length equalling 76% of the humerus , upper arm bone, length. The surface on the radius contacting the ulna is limited in size and relatively smooth. The joint surface at the underside of the radius is bevelled relative to the shaft, at an angle of about 15°. The outer edge of
5822-741: The underside of the tail, which were then considered unique. The genus of dinosaurs lived in what is now mid-western North America, at the end of the Jurassic period . It is one of the more common dinosaur fossils found in the middle to upper Morrison Formation , between about 154 and 152 million years ago, during the late Kimmeridgian Age , although it may have made it into the Tithonian. The Morrison Formation records an environment and time dominated by gigantic sauropod dinosaurs, such as Apatosaurus , Barosaurus , Brachiosaurus , Brontosaurus , and Camarasaurus . Its great size may have been
5904-484: Was briefly described by Charles Gilmore in 1932, who also referred it to D. longus , and it was mounted in the fossil hall at the National Museum of Natural History the same year. In Emmanuel Tschopp et al .'s phylogenetic analysis of Diplodocidae, USNM V 10865 was also found to be an individual of D. hallorum . The Denver Museum of Nature and Science obtained a Diplodocus specimen through exchange from
5986-464: Was collected in 1883, and was the first complete diplodocid skull to be reported. Tschopp et al. ’s analysis placed it as an indeterminate diplodocine in 2015 due to the lack of overlap with any diagnostic Diplodocus postcranial material, as was the fate with all skulls assigned to Diplodocus . After the end of the Bone Wars, many major institutions in the eastern United States were inspired by
6068-626: Was composed of a braincase, partial vertebral column, and several other postcranial elements. In 1906, the skeleton was referred to Diplodocus by William Jacob Holland when he described its braincase. The specimen was classified by Holland as a new species of Diplodocus , Diplodocus hayi , in 1924. The specific name honored Oliver Perry Hay . Another Galeamopus specimen was discovered and collected by Peter Kaisen in 1903 at Bone Cabin Quarry , Wyoming during an American Museum of Natural History expedition. This specimen (AMNH 969) consisted of
6150-465: Was considered sufficiently different from the others to consider naming a separate species for it. The skeleton included a nearly complete skull and mandibles and the majority of the anterior postcranial skeleton. In 2017, the "Max" specimen was made the type specimen of a second Galeamopus species, G. pabsti , by Tschopp and Mateus. It was named after the Swiss paleontologist Dr. Ben Pabst, who discovered
6232-468: Was discovered by Michael D'Emic et al. Within each tooth socket, as many as five replacement teeth were developing to replace the next one. Studies of the teeth also reveal that it preferred different vegetation from the other sauropods of the Morrison, such as Camarasaurus . This may have better allowed the various species of sauropods to exist without competition. The flexibility of Diplodocus neck
6314-471: Was even larger, and is estimated to have been the size of four elephants . When first described in 1991, discoverer David Gillette calculated it to be 33 m (110 ft) long based on isometric scaling with D. carnegii . However, he later stated that this was unlikely and estimated it to be 39 – 45 meters (130 – 150 ft) long, suggesting that some individuals may have been up to 52 m (171 ft) long and weighed 80 to 100 metric tons, making it
6396-528: Was later deposited at the National Museum of Natural History (USNM V 2673). It was referred to Diplodocus for many years until Tschopp et al referred the remains to Galeamopus in 2015 and Galeamopus pabsti in 2017. The type specimen of Galeamopus was discovered by fossil hunter William H. Utterback in 1902 near Sheridan, Wyoming , in the Red Fork Powder River Quarry A for the Carnegie Museum of Natural History . The specimen
6478-456: Was later mounted—the first Diplodocus mount made—and was the first well preserved individual skeleton of Diplodocus discovered. In Emmanuel Tschopp et al .'s phylogenetic analysis of Diplodocidae , AMNH FR 223 was found to be not a skeleton of D. longus , but the later named species D. hallorum . The most notable Diplodocus find also came in 1899, when crew members from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History were collecting fossils in
6560-499: Was requested by King Edward VII and it was the first sauropod mount put on display outside of the United States. The goal of Carnegie in sending these casts overseas was apparently to bring international unity and mutual interest around the discovery of the dinosaur. The Carnegie Museum of Natural History made another landmark discovery in 1909 when Earl Douglass unearthed several caudal vertebrae from Apatosaurus in what
6642-516: Was sent to the Yale Peabody Museum and was named Diplodocus longus ('long double-beam') by paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh in 1878. Marsh named Diplodocus during the Bone Wars , his competition with Philadelphian paleontologist Edward Drinker Cope to collect and describe as many fossil taxa as possible. Though several more complete specimens have been attributed to D. longus , detailed analysis has discovered that this type specimen
6724-423: Was supported by Gustav Tornier . This hypothesis was contested by William Jacob Holland , who demonstrated that a sprawling Diplodocus would have needed a trench through which to pull its belly. Finds of sauropod footprints in the 1930s eventually put Hay's theory to rest. Later, diplodocids were often portrayed with their necks held high up in the air, allowing them to graze from tall trees. Studies looking at
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